Throwback Thursday | Thanksgiving at Times of National Turmoil

Above a photo of President Johnson and his family at dinner, the headline on the front page of The New York Times for Nov. 26, 1965 read “Thanksgiving Celebrations: On a Ranch in Texas and In a War Zone in South Vietnam.” The article began:

The nation gave thanks yesterday for its bounty and good fortune. Americans were mindful, however, that the cloud of war hung over many homes. More than 160,000 United States servicemen on duty in Vietnam were not at their family tables. Others had returned wounded and maimed. More than 1,000 had died in action.

Below, more pieces about Americans celebrating Thanksgiving even as they coped with Great Depression, World Wars I and II, the war in Afghanistan, Hurricanes Katrina and Sandy, and the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

If you are a New York Times subscriber, you have access to Times Machine and can browse every issue of The Times from 1851 to 1980. What can you find? Let us know and we may feature it in a future edition of Throwback Thursday or on the @NYTarchives Twitter account.

And to learn more about what happened on this day — or any day in history — visit our On This Day index.